French Prime Minister Lecornu Resigns Following Under a Month in Office
The French Premier Lecornu has stepped down, under 24 hours after his cabinet was presented.
The French presidency issued a statement after the Prime Minister met the French President for an hour on Monday morning.
This surprising decision comes only 26 days after Lecornu was given the PM role following the collapse of the previous government of his predecessor.
Parties across the board in the legislature had sharply condemned the structure of his ministerial team, which was very close to Bayrou's, and threatened to vote it down.
Pressure for Early Elections and Political Instability
A number of factions are now calling for early elections, with others urging the President to resign too - although he has repeatedly stated he will not stand down before his mandate concludes in the year 2027.
"Macron needs to decide: dissolution of parliament or resignation," said Sébastien Chenu, one of leading figures of the far right National Rally (RN).
The outgoing PM - the ex-defense chief and a supporter of Macron - was France's fifth prime minister in less than 24 months.
Context of Political Turmoil
French politics has been very volatile since mid-2024, when early legislative polls resulted in a deadlocked assembly.
This has created challenges for any prime minister to obtain required votes to enact new laws.
The former cabinet was voted down in September after parliament voted against his spending cuts plan, which aimed to cut state costs by $51 billion.
Economic Pressures and Stock Reaction
France's deficit reached 5.8 percent of economic output in 2024 and its public debt is 114% of GDP.
That is the third largest government debt in the eurozone after two southern European nations, and equal to almost 50k euros for each resident.
Stocks fell sharply in the Paris bourse after the announcement about the PM emerged on Monday.
